Cleared to go

Finally got cleared by FBI.
Departing for Liberia on Tuesday, via Washington, DC, Brussels, Banjul, to Monrovia.
Got to love how the US Gov books travel.

Liberians in Minnesota

There are over 22,000 Liberians in Minnesota. Mary and I had the pleasure of meeting this couple Jeremiah and Loretta at their home in Brooklyn Center. Jeremiah has his own business, North American Medical Academy, which has trained over 1,000 people, many of whom are Liberians, for positions in medical fields. Loretta is a nurse at a local hospital. They have lived here for over thirty years and periodically return to their native land. Their help in learning about the customs and especially the foods of Liberia. I hope to meet their relatives.

Loretta and Jeremiah "Jerry"

What is most encouraging about our visit is learning about the role the Peace Corps has played in their lives. Jeremiah recalls the name of his 1964-68 Peace Corps High School teacher, Robert Kennedy, in the town of Sinoe who taught him not only to read English, but more importantly taught him the disciplines needed to succeed in life. Jeremiah 's two hour one-way walk to school each day, be it in rain or hot sun, did not deter his quest for knowledge. He then came to America with $100 as a student, became as U.S. solider  during the Liberian coup of John Doe to avoid going back to a country immersed in civil war, became a nurse in America, and founded his own business. Those lessons he learned from his Peace Corps teacher he tries to impart on other Liberians who come to the U.S. as political refugees, totally unprepared for life in the West.

Loretta's story was equally compelling. She was sponsored by an American doctor who saw potential in her. She works at a local hospital as a nurse. With four children now raised, she has not lost any of her gregarious and infectious personality. Her Liberian love of gardening was evident when you enter her back yard. Both are from the Kru tribe, but met in America.

Like many immigrants, they live in two worlds. They appreciate the advantages and safety of America while missing the tight familial relationships of their homeland. They try to convey to their children and others the hardships they had to endure and to be thankful of the lives they are now living.

Wishing "Papu" Bon Voyage

My family got together at a friend's in northern Wisconsin to send me off to Liberia, complete with a cake and a trip to the Freshwater Fisherman's Hall of Fame. "Papu" is my new moniker, originated from my grandson.

My "Bon Voyage Professor Shuraleff" cake

 Muskie at the Fresh Water Fisherman's Hall of Fame, Hayward, Wisconsin

My grandson Rainn. Aint he cute?

Departure Date?

Handling ambiguity and having patience are two helpful traits for the Peace Corps life.

I am frequently asked seemingly simple questions like: When are you leaving? What are you going to do in Liberia? My answer: "I don't know". Not very comforting to those near and dear to me.

My unknown (to me) departure date is open pending delay in FBI clearances of my fingerprints. The Liberians are being asked by Peace Corps if they would let me into the country without the clearance. I assume any waivers would be conditional based on my good behavior and their whims.

As to what I am going to do once I get there is another open question. In the meantime, I shall bask in the title of  Dr. Nicholas Shuraleff II, Professor of Biology.

Why Liberia? Why now?

Is there ever a perfect time when all the signs point in the same direction? If there is, then there is not one I have experienced, or maybe I just didn't see it. There are some times when moments are more compelling. I guess this one of those times.

Now is time to dust of that mortar board hat and put all those years of education to use. Why Liberia? Why now? Why not!

So it is off to another adventure until next June. Thank goodness I have an angel for a wife who understands me better than I understand myself and a family whom I shall miss.

 

The Shuraleff Family, July 2013